Pericles, (born c. 495 bc, Athens—died 429, Athens), Athenian statesman largely responsible for the full development, in the later 5th century bc, of both the Athenian democracy and the Athenian empire, making Athens the political and cultural focus of Greece. His achievements included the construction of the Acropolis, begun in 447.

Background and education.

Knowledge of the life of Pericles derives largely from two sources. The historian Thucydides admired him profoundly and refused to criticize him. His account suffers from the fact that, 40 years younger, he had no firsthand knowledge of Pericles’ early career; it suffers also from his ... (100 of 2,987 words)